About Us

 

HOMELESS WOMEN BUILDING THE BELOVED COMMUNITY

The Women’s Housing Equality and Enhancement League (WHEEL) is a non-profit and non-hierarchical group of homeless and formerly homeless women working on ending homelessness for women in Seattle and King County.  WHEEL is all about empowerment and action.

WHEEL works to get women out of the places where they have been hiding, recognize each woman as an individual, and involve women in the process of improving programs and creating new programs for their own needs.

WHEEL’s goals are to give voice and leadership to homeless women, to organize campaigns around increased services and safety for women, and to develop and support shelters.

Since 1993, WHEEL has initiated many campaigns that have improved the lives of all women. Our efforts have included:

  • Pushing for longer hours at shelters and drop-in centers
  • Moving the entrance of DESC from “Crack Alley” to Third Avenue
  • Holding yearly Homeless Women’s Forums, community gatherings.
  • Establishing new shelters, day programs, meal projects and housing for women…including the County Winter Women’s Shelter, Meal of Fortune, and Dorothy Day House

 

WHEEL is the women-only, women-concerned partner organization to SHARE (Seattle Housing and Resource Effort).  Both WHEEL and SHARE provide self-managed shelters—including Tent Cities.  WHEEL itself now facilitates two loving, low-barrier women’s shelters on First Hill.

Current Projects